One Thing
by Mac-alicious
Summary: Ten years later and it comes back around to him. She had always known it would. Dan x Serena


**A/N: **Here's my Dan x Serena oneshot. It was written pre Episode 2.14, so I took the spoiler that Aaron wouldn't be returning a different way. Not sure about the ending I think it was a little rushed, mostly because I was inspired for the beginning and then lost it about halfway through. Anyway, enjoy! R&R! Thanks! –Mac

**Disclaimer: **I don't own GG.

**One Thing**

He left New York the first chance he got—because it was hard to change who you were when everyone already had an opinion of you—and it took him ten years to look back. She never left—while he felt like he never belonged there, she felt like she never belonged anywhere else—and it took her ten years to figure out why it still had never felt right. Though they could never quite pinpoint what it was, they both had felt that something was missing. That one thing they were searching for would lead them right back around to where they started.

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Dan had returned to New York because he was offered a job as a staff writer on a small publication, but also because he hadn't seen his family in awhile—with his dad focusing on the gallery still and Jenny running her line completely out of the city they hadn't found much time to visit him. It was time he came home. And the first time he set foot back in the city, he realized he had missed the place far more than he had allowed himself to believe he did. With a steady job that got him by while he attempted to write a novel that would change the world and his family around all the time, he began to fall into a routine.

Serena loved New York. It was her home, she had grown up there. It was familiar and she was comfortable there. That's why she could never get herself to leave. She had a hard enough time deciding what she wanted to do with her life; she didn't have the patience or capacity to learn a new city at the same time. She would rather walk the streets she had known her whole life. Some people might find it boring, but she loved it. She was perfectly content with her routine—well, at least half of the time. The other half, she was wondering why she wasn't always satisfied with how her life was.

After a decade of feeling that way, she would finally find out.

The first time Serena saw Dan again, she was surprised to say the least. There was a rumor going around that he was back in town, but she honestly hadn't believed it. Even if she had believed it, she would have chosen to ignore it because she and Dan hadn't had the best track record when it came to each other. Their history was almost as rocky a Blair and Chuck's, though not as racy—but even that infamous duo had never gone ten years without seeing the other. Serena caught a glimpse of her ex as he stood in line at a coffee shop she often visited when she was in need of a caffeine boost. She was coming in the door as he waited for his order at the opposite end of the counter. Though she was almost paralyzed in her shock, she did the only thing she could do—she turned on her heel and walked out of the place before he saw her.

Even though she wasn't brave enough to say a simple hello to him, she knew, in that moment, everything had clicked into place. He was what had been missing. She hadn't felt complete since he left New York faster than she could say goodbye. But she knew, it wasn't likely that she would be able to resolve it—especially if she couldn't even speak to him.

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The second time Serena saw Dan, it was once again purely accidental. She had been spending the day with Eric—they did this every once and awhile to keep up with each others' lives because they had learned long before that they had the tendency to drift apart when they didn't live together. They were just finishing lunch and leaving the restaurant when Eric announced that he needed to meet a friend real quick. He had failed to mention said friend was Jenny Humphrey and that her brother would be with her as well. Looking back, Serena would wonder if she might have been set up. Eric dragged her into Jenny's apartment and dropped her next to Dan while he went to speak with Jenny about whatever the urgent crisis had been. Though she had not been avoiding the elder Humphrey, she didn't have the option to run this time around and that terrified her.

After a long moment of awkward silence, Serena finally opened with, "So you're back in New York? Well, obviously you're in New York, you're here…and this is…New York. Never mind, that was a stupid question. What brings you back?"

"A job actually. It's not really much. It's just to support me while I work on getting a publisher to actually take a serious look at the book I'm writing," Dan answered, "And my Dad has been begging me to come home, since, well, since I left."

"That sounds great, the job I mean. And that you're doing exactly what you've dreamed of doing. We're almost thirty and I still don't know what I want to do when I grow up," Serena responded.

"The Serena I knew was resourceful, you'll figure it out eventually. And it'll be worth waiting for in the end," Dan replied.

"Thank you Dan. You're the first person to not completely rail on me for waiting to establish a career," Serena smiled softly, "It's rather annoying when they pretty much had _their_ careers fall into their laps. Chuck inherited his, and Blair doesn't know anything better than fashion. And Aaron pretty much had a career when I met him."

"Oh, so you still see Aaron?" Dan frowned slightly. "Are you two…"

"No!" Serena exclaimed, "I just see him around sometimes, he is Blair's stepbrother."

"Right, I keep forgetting that," Dan nodded.

"Besides, you know everything between me and him fizzled out when he decided to stay in Argentina. And since he came back we've been strictly friends," Serena continued, "Wow, I've just realized…I'm twenty-eight and unemployed with no romantic prospects. I am a pathetic mess."

"No you're not," Dan corrected, "Everything will work itself out. And it's hard to believe you don't have _any_ romantic prospects. You are _still_ Serena van der Woodsen. Back in high school there wasn't a guy who didn't want you."

"Well, this isn't high school anymore," Serena responded. "But thank you, Dan. It's sweet of you to say that."

"It's no problem," Dan smiled at her, "Really, anytime."

"I might just take you up on that," Serena replied.

"Okay Serena, I'm all set," Eric reappeared with Jenny beside him, "You ready to go?"

"Yeah," Serena nodded quickly, standing to leave, "It was nice seeing you again Dan. Bye Jenny."

When they were out of the building and halfway down the block, Eric turned to Serena, "Hey I'm sorry you got stuck with Dan. I honestly didn't know he was going to be there. It wasn't too horrible was it?"

"No, it wasn't that bad at all," Serena answered. "It _really_ was good to see him again."

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Although, Serena was almost certain it was a bad idea, not even a week after seeing Dan at Jenny's she found herself calling him. She asked him to meet her fro coffee so they could catch up. She had him join her at the same coffee shop she had first seen him at not long before. She just kept telling herself it would be okay and it wasn't stupid to deliberately put herself in the same room as him—over and over until she practically believed it.

This time when she walked into the coffee shop and saw Dan Humphrey waiting for an order, she didn't have to go running in the opposite direction. Instead she walked right up next to him. He had been sweet enough to order her a coffee—and to still remember what her favorite drink was even after all the years that had passed. They found one of the more secluded tables and sat down to talk. When they were finished with their coffees, they decided that they weren't sufficiently caught up and took a short walk—though neither would deny the accusation that they just wanted to spend a little more time in the others' presence.

As they walked the same streets they had walked a decade before, Serena couldn't help but think about what she and Dan had back then. A part of her thought she should put those feelings aside—move on like she's sure he has—but another part of her, which seemed to be winning out, thought she should tell him right at that moment how she felt, how she still felt. Serena glanced sideways at Dan and he caught her gaze, smiling slightly at her. Serena sighed lightly and made a decision.

"Dan, can I talk to you about something important?" Serena asked, watching her feet as they continued to walk.

"Of course," Dan raised an eyebrow, "Anything."

"My whole life is a series of mistakes," Serena admitted, "Nothing I did ever seemed to turn out right in the end. I was such a mess for so long. I never thought it would ever change."

"That's not true, Serena," Dan broke in.

"If I did _one thing_ right in my life, it was when I gave my heart to you," Serena said as she came to a stop to turn all the way toward Dan. What she was going to say next was too important to say without being able to look him in the eye. "And I honestly don't believe I ever got it back, because it's been ten years and you are still the only one who can make my heart skip a beat with one look. I love you Dan Humphrey and I don't think I will ever stop."

Dan's eyes widened at her last admission, "I…wow…I wasn't expecting that at all."

"I know you probably moved on a long time ago, but I thought you should know how I feel," Serena said quietly.

"That's not it," Dan corrected, "I…I've always had feelings for you Serena. I just never expected you to still feel that way after this long."

Serena smiled, "Well I do. I think it was always meant to be you and if there's one thing I know—if we let this opportunity slip by us, we'll regret it for the rest of our lives. And I don't want that to happen, do you?"

"No, I don't," Dan agreed.

Then, to show her he really meant it, Dan took Serena into his arms and kissed her in the middle of the crowded sidewalk. Ten years later and it had come back around to him. She had always known it would.


End file.
